# What is a "handicap pouch"
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [August 6, 2014, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931 "2014-08-06T09:37:02Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@bardos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bardos)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/1 "2014-08-06T09:37:02Z")
I’ve seen it on the web related to hunting and carrying shells, but is it also related to horse racing? thanks
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### Author:  [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 10:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/2 "2014-08-06T10:14:03Z")
[You may be thinking of this?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=489162)
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### Author:  [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/3 "2014-08-06T11:16:11Z")
Of course formalised horseracing was invented over here, like so many other sports. I think the handicapping system is different in the UK to the USA:
> [@](#):
>
> Handicaps are races which bring together horses of varying levels of ability. The idea being that the better horses in the race carry more weight than the poorer horses. So in theory, all horses in a handicap have an equal chance of winning, if they all run to the best of their ability.
> [@](#):
>
> Handicaps are the lifeblood of most trainers and owners, and always will be. There will always be ways they can exploit them, so it is useful if we are aware of this too.
You should be aware that the perfect combination of horse and jockey will not need any extra weights. This is because the dead weight in the pouch is harder for the horse to carry than the live weight on the saddle.
There is a brief and succint guide here [UK Horse Racing :: FAQ](http://www.ukhorseracing.co.uk/faq/HandicappingExplained.asp)
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### Author:  [@bardos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bardos)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/4 "2014-08-06T11:16:28Z")
Not thinking of… i need to translate this phrase into Spanish with hardly any context
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### Author:  [@bardos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bardos)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/5 "2014-08-06T11:17:36Z")
So the handicap pouch is the extra weight added to a horse in a handicapped race?
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### Author:  [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/6 "2014-08-06T11:31:47Z")
Not necessarily just a handicapped race.
For example the Kentucky Derby rules, IIRC, mandate each horse carry 126 lbs.
If the jockey and equipment come in at say 122, 4 lbs will be added.
Different than a handicap race.
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### Author:  [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/7 "2014-08-06T14:31:06Z")
> [@bardos](#):
>
> So the handicap pouch is the extra weight added to a horse in a handicapped race?
It’s the bag that the weight goes into
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### Author:  [@bardos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bardos)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/8 "2014-08-06T15:08:25Z")
> [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](#):
>
> It’s the bag that the weight goes into
ok, thanks. It’s pretty clear now.
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### Author:  [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/9 "2014-08-06T15:20:18Z")
I can’t find a cite (of course) but I believe now they have sealed bags of various weighs so a weight couldn’t “accidentally” fall out of the bag at the gate.
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### Author:  [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/10 "2014-08-06T16:02:13Z")
And after the race, all the jockeys queue up with their saddles and weights to be weighed in. Any discrepancy and the horse gets disqualified.
[ ](http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Sport/Pix/pictures/2012/7/26/1343325565233/Kempton-weighing-room-008.jpg)
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### Author:  [@brad\_d](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brad_d)
#### Post date: [August 6, 2014, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-a-handicap-pouch/694931/11 "2014-08-06T16:21:02Z")
Once it’s determined that a horse will require ballast for a race, is there any benefit to the jockey himself donning the ballast in an attempt to make the added weight less “dead” (at least, from the horse’s perspective)?